What If, Book 1
by Willow25
Summary: What if Spike recovered his Magically repressed memories earlier? How would it change everything else? Sequel to the What If Books, Prologue. Chapter 8 added, please R&R!
1. Chapter 1

What If, Book 1: What if Spike had regained his repressed memories before he did?

A/N: This story is the first installment of the 'What If Books' series; I found a challenge on the Bloodshedverse that inspired a scrap of an idea to form a full-fledged plot bunny. The question was asked by Buffy. Spike's repressed memories are first discussed in my story 'Fade Away Again'. This story begins during 'The Harvest'.

I intend no infringement on the copyrights or other intellectual properties of Mutant Enemy, Joss Whedon or his brilliant staff of writers, Fox, FX, UPN, (do they still have rights if they're defunct?), and anyone else who owns a piece of the BtVS pie, legally speaking. This is a purely creative endeavor, I'm making no profits from it.

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Chapter 1

A Black DeSoto crashed into the overly-cheerful 'Welcome to Sunnydale' sign, hitting the curb across the intersection as it rolled to a stop. From the driver's side, a slim bleached-blonde man emerged in a cloud of smoke, turning to face the petite strawberry-blonde who had popped out of the passenger door.

"Well, Jilly-bean, this looks like the place." He turned in a circle, wandering away from the car as he lit yet another cigarette. "Not very Hellmouth-y lookin', is it?"

The woman rolled her eyes at him. "As the kids say these days, 'duh', Spike. If it looked like a Hellmouth, there'd be no humans hanging around." She turned her attention away from her companion and towards the neighborhood around them. "It's a nice cover, very homey. Cleveland's not nearly as good at hiding what it is; people are always so suspicious in the city. I'll bet you could vamp out in the middle of the street here and no one would notice."

Before he had a chance to respond, a scream rent the air. Spike whirled towards the noise, focusing until he spotted a woman running through the park across the way. "Jill, stay in the car with Dru. Lock the doors." Before she could acknowledge him, he'd taken off at a dead run.

Jill snorted. "Stay in the car. Make sure the car is safe, you mean." Rolling her eyes, she strolled around to close the driver's door. "Men!"

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Spike easily waylaid the fledgling vamp he'd seen hunting, allowing the woman to escape. Dusting the nasty little bugger, however, had proven more challenging. The vamp led him on a whirlwind tour of Sunnydale, before cutting through a cemetery and tripping over a tombstone, giving Spike the chance to catch up. 

"Bloody stupid wanker." Spike grumbled as he dragged the disoriented fledge to his feet. "First, you interrupt my evening, then, you don't even have the courtesy to stand your ground and fight!" He began pummeling the other vampire, who took a few swings, but was so injured by that point that Spike barely noticed his punches. "Come on you sod, fight back a little."

Just then, Spike noticed a heartbeat in the vicinity. He stepped back to look around, and give the other vamp a sporting chance, but the fledgling just sank to the ground, moaning in pain. Spike sighed, eyeing the puddle of blood and vampire critically. "If I were your sire, I'd be ashamed. Waste of perfectly good blood, you are." The vampire at his feet moaned again, and shifted as if to crawl away.

"Oh, no you don't." Spike reached down and grabbed the younger vamp by the throat. "I'm going to kill you now. But first…" He vamped out, and met the frightened eyes of the vampire frantically clawing at the hands around his throat. "Here's a little lesson in being prey."

Spike unerringly sank his fangs into the other vamp's jugular, draining what was left of his blood before rearing back and twisting the other vampire's head off. As the body in his hands disintegrated, Spike wiped his mouth and turned back in the direction he'd come from. "Wanker," he muttered. "Not even a decent spot of violence out of that one." He shook his head disparagingly.

As the vampire's footsteps sounded on the sidewalk outside the cemetery, a small form slid out from behind a large oak tree. The Slayer made her way over to examine the pile of dust, as though that would give her a clue what had just happened. The dust was nothing but dusty.

"Well, that was wiggy." Buffy shook her head, and looked at the gate the other vampire had left through. She carefully headed in that direction, but of course he was gone by the time she reached the street. With a shrug, she decided to tell Giles tomorrow, maybe, and headed home.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: A much longer chapter this time, taking the story completely off-canon, and into an AU. One or two lines of dialogue from 'The Harvest', all credit to Joss and Co. for the characters.

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Chapter 2

Only seven vampires, against a club full of humans. Well, and a few strays in the crowd, but still; not enough vamps to be a serious problem. It should have been a cakewalk, especially with all the pool cues floating around. The humans, though, were oblivious to the danger they were in, and most of the vampires were over a hundred years old. It promised to be quite the party.

Spike doubled back through the crowd as the vampires entered, and dusted the guard by the door first so the humans had a way out. He met Jill's eyes across the room, and headed for the fledgling on the dance floor, while she followed the vamp climbing towards the loft.

"Excuse me, may I cut in?" He sidled up to the curvy brunette the fledge had in his arms, disengaging and staking the stupid fledgling before he had a chance to protest.

"Rude much, we were in the middle of a dance here!" Cordelia pulled away from the creepy old guy, glancing around for Jesse. "Hey, where did he go?"

Spike chuckled. He'd never understand the human capacity for denial. "I made him disappear, luv. If you don't want to dance, fine by me."

Suddenly, the club was plunged into darkness, and Spike was surrounded by screaming teenagers. "Luv, why don't you head back towards the bar, eh?" Not waiting for a reply, he cut through the crowd, headed for the stage.

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Buffy, Giles, Willow, and Xander raced up to the Bronze, practically skidding to a halt as they reached the door, Buffy in the lead. "It's locked!" She groaned.

"We're too late." Giles tried to control his exasperation, but with the world about to end, it was hard not to be frustrated by something as simple as a locked door.

"I didn't know…" Buffy was interrupted by the door opening. A small woman popped her head out, stake held aloft.

"Oh, hey, you're the Slayer!" Jill dropped the hand with the stake to her side. "Thank goodness, I was afraid William would be on his own." She emerged fully, holding the door open. "The vessel is on the stage. He's old, so be careful. William's dusted two already, and I got one, so there should be five more vamps in there, give or take. I'll keep the door clear, so you can send the humans out."

Normally, Buffy would have asked a lot of questions at that point, but she wasn't one to look a gift horse in the mouth. "Right. Giles, you stay with her; guys, come with me."

Jill turned to face the guy who was obviously a Watcher standing beside her, gaping like a fish. "Hi, I'm Jill!"

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Spike snuck up to the side of the stage, noting the door and it's guard to his right. On the riser next to the stage stood Darla, and another, even older vamp he knew as George. As far as he'd seen, these were the only two who could identify him. Another vamp stood center stage, and George began dragging a huge man towards him, while Darla watched, rapt.

Well, this was his best chance. He lurched forward as fast as he could, and had the stake imbedded in Darla's heart before she could even turn around, capitalizing on her distraction. As George passed the victim off, he caught the movement out of the corner of his eye, and turned to find himself face to face with Spike.

"'Ello, mate." Spike took a shot on throwing a stake towards the older vamp, but of course, his speed was much greater, and George caught the stake inches from his heart.

"William, what a pleasant surprise. I've always wanted to kill you." George moved forward, taking the time to be menacing. It proved to be his downfall, as he wasn't concentrating enough to avoid the pool cue Spike shoved through his chest.

"Feeling's entirely mutual." He sneered, as the vampire turned to dust.

Spike turned, intending to take care of the other guard, and open the back door for the humans. Before he could take a step, he was dragged backwards.

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Buffy watched the vampire she'd fought earlier, now with ugly vessel-mark added, drop the obviously dead bouncer to the stage. A pool cue dropped clattering to the stage off to his right, and Buffy deduced that either someone incredibly klutzy was up there, or another vampire had just been staked. She turned to Willow and Xander, who were nudging people towards the exit behind her. "Guys, stay back here." She tossed her slaying bag towards Willow, before shaking the stake out of her sleeve into her hand, and moving forward through the terrified crowd.

Buffy really wanted to hang back with her friends and make sure the crowd got out safe, but she knew she couldn't trust some guy she'd never met to take care of this Harvest thingy. As much as she hated it, it was her duty, and the end of the world meant she'd never have a chance at being un-grounded.

Another scream went up from the crowd, and Buffy looked up to see the bleached-blonde vamp from the cemetery hanging by his neck from the vessel's hand. When she'd mentioned it to Giles the other day, he'd dismissed the action as a vampire putting down an out-of-control fledgling. But, if the guy was here staking other vamps, she wasn't so picky that she'd dust him first.

"Hey!" She called, trying to distract the larger vampire. "Shouldn't you be looking for a meal, instead of playing with your friends?" The vessel turned towards her, giving Spike a chance to kick both feet into Luke's stomach, heaving himself away. The two vampires dropped to the ground, and Buffy ran towards the stage, jumping up to land next to the vessel.

Spike rolled off the stage, headed for a fledgling who was taking advantage of the leadership void to have a little snack. He threw a hard left to the vamp's jaw, allowing the teenager to escape, before grabbing another pool cue and staking the younger vampire. Only to be hit across the back, sending him to the ground. Before Spike could get up, he felt a disturbance in the air behind him, and flung himself to the side to avoid the stake he felt sure was headed his way. He moved quickly enough to avoid a dusty ending, but not quite fast enough to avoid a big piece of wood through the shoulder.

"Bloody hell!" Spike screamed, yanking what seemed to be a wooden chair leg out of his right shoulder. He stumbled to his feet, spinning to avoid the kick being thrown his way by the enraged female vampire bearing down on him. "I'm gonna kill you, bitch!" Spike vamped out, hurling the stake towards his opponent, who dodged gracefully out of the way.

"What kind of vampire goes against his own kind? You are weak, a disgrace to the Order of Aurelius." The female sneered, throwing a punch at his injured shoulder, making Spike howl in pain.

Spike looked up, searching for an advantage over his stronger, uninjured opponent, when he noticed the Slayer watching him. He threw a punch, thankful his good hand was still in working order, giving the Slayer enough time to disentangle herself from the vamp she was fighting and throw a cymbal towards the vamp leaning over him. Spike hit the deck, just in case, and seconds later the cymbal cut the air above him, scattering vampire dust in its wake.

"Well, I may be a disgrace, but I'm not a pile of dust." He told the dust pithily, heading off to do another sweep of the loft area.

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Buffy watched the vessel's corpse hit the floor in front of the stage and explode into dust with a great deal of satisfaction. She hadn't even had to burn down the building. Score one for not being grounded for the rest of the year. Oh, yeah, and preventing the Harvest, too.

Buffy was searching the gloomy interior for a sight of her friends, or any more vamps, when the lights came back on. Jumping down from the stage, she strolled over to meet Willow and Xander, who were running towards her. "Did we win?" Willow asked, looking nervously around the room.

"I dare say we did." Giles said, coming to stand beside them, cleaning his glasses as he walked.

"Well, I had a little help." Buffy shrugged, searching the room for anyone else left inside. "Did everyone get out okay?"

"Yeah, except for the bouncer." Xander nodded towards the stage.

Jill walked over, also scanning the room. "We caught one vamp trying to escape, but I still feel two in the area, one farther away. Did you see William?"

"Bleached blonde, about 5' 10", in the vampy way?" Buffy asked, crossing her arms over her chest. Now was the time for answers.

"You didn't stake him, did you?" Jill's eyes widened in fear.

"Her friend's a vampire?" Xander panicked, turning around, looking for another threat.

Behind Buffy, a dark figure dropped from the loft, landing almost silently on the dance floor. "William!" Jill squealed, racing towards him.

"Good heavens." Giles muttered, watching the small woman run towards the blonde man Buffy seemed to believe was a vampire. Was it possible, that a vampire had gone against it's own kind, had aided them in stopping the Harvest?

"Giles, that's him. The vamp I told you about, who killed the other vamp in the graveyard." Buffy said. "I saw him stake another one, earlier."

Giles nodded, watching the woman across the room fussing over the vampire, who was bleeding from a chest wound.

"Sodding bitch tried to stake me!" The vampire said angrily. "Stupid, really, I should know better than to get distracted like that."

"Stop fussing, William, and sit down so I can check for splinters." Jill pushed the angry vampire towards the closest chair, extracting a piece of metal from a pouch attached to her belt.

Buffy, Giles, Xander and Willow looked on, fascinated. None of them had ever seen a vampire who was calm around humans, let alone one who had not killed a particular human for long enough to make friends with them. Spike looked up, noticing the group watching them.

"Hey, Slayer, thanks for the help back there. I mighta seen a dusty end tonight, if not for you." Spike nodded at the blonde, who was watching him like a hawk.

"Uh, yeah, well, my curiosity got the better of me, I guess." Buffy blushed at the look Giles gave her. "You don't see many vampires who fight their own kind."

Spike opened his mouth to answer, but Jill picked that moment to pull an especially large splinter out of his chest, and he vamped out from the pain. Willow and Xander both screamed, while Giles and Buffy fumbled for stakes to defend the woman who still had her hands against the vampire's chest.

"Bloody hell, woman, that hurt!" Spike snarled.

Jill smacked her vampire companion across the cheek. "Put the fangs away, William, before you get staked again." Then she calmly returned her hands to his chest, to resume splinter removal.

Buffy started. She'd never seen a human be so calm around vampires. Not even her first Watcher, who'd been a good fighter, if lacking her strength. Maybe the woman wasn't human, either.

"Right, sorry." Spike's face morphed back to his human features, a bit abashed that he'd lost control like that, especially with an audience.

Giles was absolutely fascinated. He couldn't wait to get home and start researching this. He'd never heard of a human who could control a vampire, which is what he assumed was happening. "I say, William, is it? How did you come to be fighting other vampires, if I may ask?"

Spike rolled his eyes. He'd figured that if it came to that, he'd go to the Slayer for help, which of course meant dealing with the Council wanker, but he was cranky from loss of blood, and he'd prefer not to tell the whole miserable tale tonight. Besides, Dru was home all alone, and he wasn't heartless enough to leave her chained up for any longer than he absolutely needed to.

"Look," Jill interrupted. "I'm sure you have plenty of questions, but William's hurt, and right now I need to get him home and get some blood into him." Jill put the metal object back into her pouch, and turned to the other humans. "He's no danger to humans, I'll vouch for that. We'll come see you in a few nights, if you like. Where can we reach you?"

Giles haltingly explained his position as high school librarian, and Spike just barely managed not to howl with laughter at the whole thing. A mild mannered librarian as a Watcher? He'd never cared for the Council, but it seemed that they'd done things a sight better in his day. Jill simply gave calm assurances that they would seek the Watcher out when 'William' was healed, and turned to go. Spike hauled himself out of the chair, conscious of nothing much other than the pain in his chest, and followed her.

"Wonder who the other kids were, don't you?" Jill murmured once they got outside.

"Strange lot that. Never heard of a Slayer out and about, milling with the humans before. A Slayer in high school." Spike shook his head. "Now I've seen bloody everything."

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Angel watched Spike and the human woman get into a VW bus and take off at an alarming speed, just as the Slayer and her friends emerged from the empty club. He hadn't heard what went on inside, but he'd scented the younger vampire's blood. It made him wonder why Spike wasn't dust, and why Darla was.

He was thrilled, if surprised, that Buffy had managed to survive the Harvest and the Master had not been freed from his prison. But the loss of his sire was completely unexpected, and the pain had shifted his focus from Buffy and her friends.

He'd miss Darla; even if the bitch had rejected him ever since the soul, she was his maker, and he'd loved her. Evil slut; she obviously hadn't cared about him. Darla's rejection had soured him on the whole idea of vampire families. Without his soul he'd been a proud patriarch, training and mentoring his clan in the ways of blood and pain; now he couldn't stand the sight of them.

Angel focused through his pain and loneliness, hoping to catch up on the Slayer's conversation with her Watcher and find out what the heck was going on around here. What he heard was a series of speculations on why the vampire they knew as William would be helping them. No way. There was no friggin' way his brat of a grandchilde was going to worm his way into their group. Whether he was actually planning to help, or setting things up to kill his third Slayer, Angel would not allow Spike's success. These were his humans, it was his destiny to aid the Slayer in protecting the Hellmouth. Spike had better get gone, and quick, or Angel would send him right after Darla.

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Buffy curled in a ball around Mr. Gordo, replaying the night in her mind. A vampire who killed his own kind, who was friends with a human, and had showed up to help her fight the Master's followers. It was like living in bizarro world. The unknown vampire William confused and troubled her, but it had been nice to fight alongside someone. That move with the cymbal was totally cool. His fighting style impressed her, although she would refuse to admit that if asked.

She shivered and pulled her blankets tight around her body. She didn't want to be the Slayer, and after Merrick's death, and her subsequent family troubles, she'd given up patrolling. Seeing the vampire fighter in action, she had to admit she was out of practice. If she truly did have to take up the mantle of defender of humanity in a permanent way, she'd need to train more. Only her ingenuity and a helping hand from the mysterious British vampire had saved her and the patrons of the Bronze.

There was also the annoyingly cryptic Angel to consider. He'd warned her about the Harvest, then Spike had shown up to help. She wondered if they were working together. Was tall, dark and hottie a vampire too? She rolled onto her other side. William might know.

William… He wasn't her type; and undead, so no date-age potential there, really. Plus, the human girl he'd been with. Still, she'd noticed the gorgeous bone structure, and the way his muscles rippled as he moved. Plus, really yummy ass. Buffy shook her head to clear it. She'd never met a cute vampire before. The ones she usually came in contact with were ugly, dirty, and smelly. William had been clean and handsome. It was another freak-inducing point to think over. She'd never thought she would find herself attracted to a monster.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Another short-ish chapter, hope you all think it's worth it. And hey, look everybody, I can write Dru! Who knew, right? Please read, and review, and let me know what you think.

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Chapter 3

Three days went by in relative peace after the Harvest. Buffy finally gave in to Giles' request to train with him, and if he was less athletic than Merrick, he was totally helpful in getting back to her training regimen. They hadn't heard from William, Angel, or the woman Giles told her was named Jill; but Giles reminded her Jill and William would wait until he was fully healed before coming to them, and as Jill said at the Bronze, it might be a few days. Vampires healed more slowly from wounds inflicted by wood, especially close to the heart. Angel was a mystery neither of them could get a handle on.

That night, while Buffy headed to the locker room to change, planning to swing by the Bronze on her way home, the library phone rang. Giles froze in mid-motion, his attempt to replace his swords in the book cage forgotten. It was either the Council, or the mysterious Jill. No one else would call so late.

The Watcher picked up the phone hesitantly, feeling foolish as he did. It wasn't like something would jump out at him though the line. He was a bloody wanker, that was all there was to it. "Hello, library." Giles answered the phone, hoping his voice sounded steadier than it felt.

"Rupert Giles? This is Jill Walker, we met at the Bronze? The night of the Harvest? I'm calling to discuss a meeting with your Slayer?"

Rupert smiled. The young woman was nervous, probably terrified he'd sick the Council's wetworks team on her for consorting with a vampire. "Yes, Miss Walker, it's good to hear from you. Buffy has been most anxious to see you and your vampire companion again. We both have many questions."

"Buffy? Oh, is she the Slayer? I didn't get her name. What kind of name is Buffy, anyway? Is it short for Elizabeth?" Jill's rapid fire questions drew to a stop. "I should probably let you answer one or two before I ask more questions, huh?"

Giles couldn't hold in a chuckle. "It's quite alright, I'm sure you have as many questions for us as we have for you. Yes, Buffy Summers is the Slayer; and Buffy is her given name, odd as it may seem. It might be better if we save further inquiries for our meeting. Are you available to stop by the High School tomorrow night?"

Jill smiled and nodded, then felt like an ass for doing so. Not like he could see her. "Yes, tomorrow is fine. Would it be possible to ask one more question? Who were the other teens at the Bronze with you? Do they help Buffy regularly?"

Rupert cleared his throat. He was still having a great deal of trouble with Buffy's friends wanting to be involved. He sympathized with the fact that she was a social creature, and wanted to be around people her own age and be honest with them, but it went against every rule he'd learned for training the Slayer. "Well, er, yes, they have been helping. I had hoped to minimize their involvement, but…"

"Mr. Giles, don't worry, I'm not going to freak out and bust on you, I think it's great that the Slayer has some help, however it happened. I just wanted to let you know that if they intend to be around, then you should ask them to be at the meeting. The Slayer's…Buffy's family as well."

Giles stiffened. He's followed the Council's advice in forbidding Buffy to explain her calling to her mother, as had her previous Watcher, although on just a few day's acquaintance he could see how difficult it was for Buffy to keep the secret. It had begun to prick at his conscience, but he was attempting to play by the rules as much as possible. This posting was what his family had always wanted for him; he wasn't about to be dismissed and bring shame to the Giles line…No matter how stuck up and Medieval that sounded.

"Buffy lives alone with her mother, her parents were recently divorced. It is Council policy that Slayers should have as little contact as possible with their families, though Buffy is already a special case, in that she was not identified as a Potential prior to…"

Jill sighed. "Mr. Giles, I'm sorry, I don't mean to be rude, but I know a great deal about the Council of Watchers. I assumed the family knew little or nothing about the girl's calling. I still would like you to invite the Slayer's mother to the meeting. Tell her it's about Buffy's text books, or she misbehaved in study hall, or whatever. I'll explain it all tomorrow, but I need you to have some faith. Plus, if you think about it, your Slayer is under a great deal of extra stress if she has to hide her calling from her mother. She needs someone to understand; otherwise the pressure alone might break her."

Giles felt a fissure of fear run up his spine. He couldn't imagine the vibrant girl he watched over; with her flippant dismissal of authority figures, and perky effervescence; as a broken shell of a warrior. Rupert knew it was possible, though. His father had been the third Watcher of a Slayer, and the girl had only survived months under his tutelage. Harvey Giles had often commented that the poor girl had no personality, no will to live. It had been a miracle, he said, and a testament to her fighting skill, that she lasted three years.

So, Rupert Giles made a decision. That would never be Buffy. She had a strong will, and he would not try to break it. This strange woman was right; the Slayer was very young, and didn't need extra pressure. This was why Slayers usually lived with their Watchers, so they had someone who understood their lives, and so their families weren't involved. That would be impossible with Buffy, so the only logical way to make life easier for his Slayer was to confide the secret to her mother.

Giles wasn't a trusting man, and he didn't know Jill Walker from Adam, as the saying went. The other night, he'd seen enough of the woman to know that she had some powers of her own, and that she was practical and calm under pressure. She would either become a great ally, or a dangerous enemy. If he handled the situation correctly, with caution, he could use the contact with Jill and her vampire companion to discover their secrets, and still keep Buffy and the other children safe.

"Yes, alright, I'll speak to Joyce tomorrow. Although, I do not feel confident about exposing her to a vampire's presence." Giles replied hesitantly. He'd come around to the idea of telling Buffy's mother about her calling, but that didn't make him feel any better about telling the woman her daughter was destined to die young, or possibly getting the woman eaten by a vampire.

Jill chuckled. "Don't worry about William, Mr. Giles, the last thing he'd do is drain the Slayer's mom. We'll see you tomorrow after sunset. About 7:00?" Jill was pleased that he'd agreed to get the Slayer's mother involved. Well, he'd agreed to tell her about her daughter, anyway, and that was a huge step in the right direction.

"That will be fine. We shall be assembled in the high school library, awaiting your arrival." God, I sound pompous, Rupert thought. Sometimes, he scared himself with the thought that he was becoming his father.

As he said his final farewells and hung up the phone, Giles was startled by a scraping noise in the stacks. "Hello? I say, is someone there?" He allowed his voice to show his fear, while silently grabbing a crossbow from under the front desk and pointing it in the direction the noise had come from.

"No need to fear, Watcher, I'm not here to hurt you." Angel stepped forward, just enough so that the human could see his outline, and aim the weapon correctly. "I'm here to pass along some information. Do some reading up on William the Bloody, the Slayer of Slayers. It'll be useful when he shows up here tomorrow."

Giles felt light-headed as the figure he'd just barely spotted faded back out of sight. What in the name of God had he gotten them all into?

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Jill turned to face Spike, who was hovering in her office doorway. "Well, he's agreed to have us over to the high school tomorrow night for a Q&A, and to invite the Slayer's friends and her mother."

Spike nodded, and lit a cigarette. "Well, that sounds like progress. What about the father? He around?" Being used to dominant women, Spike was perhaps more sensitive about men being excluded from things. Not like he'd admit that as he disintegrated.

Jill shrugged. "The Slayer, whose name is Buffy, by the way, lives alone with her mother. Rupert said her parents got divorced just recently."

Spike snorted. "Buffy? Bloody ridiculous name, that. So, she's short one pap, ey? Think the divorce was timed around her gettin' called?"

The woman looked up from her computer screen, where she had been typing up some notes for the big meeting, to study the vampire filling her office with cigarette smoke. He'd come a long way since the day they met, but sometimes she still had trouble following his erratic thought patterns. Jill thought part of it was the vampire demon warring with the person William had been before he was turned; but whatever the cause, the effect was that he seemed to have ADD. His current slouching, smoking concentration was a rare thing, indeed. After three days spent mostly in bed, he should be climbing the walls, in her experience.

Jill stopped staring when Spike noticed and started waggling his tongue at her. "Anything's possible, Spike." Jill replied, smiling at his antics. "Even white Wiccans and soul-less vampires living together in peace and relative harmony." Jill returned to her typing, William's laughter echoing in her ears as he left her alone to check on Drusilla.

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Drusilla curled up on her pretty, blood-red window seat, hugging her knees to her chin. She was tired. Always tired, now. Her dark prince would not let her eat the cakes, but brought her gruel instead. There were no children to join her tea parties, only the pretty white lady who gave Princess no milk. She was sad, and lonely, and her prince was not in the dark anymore…No, he was in the dark, silly Princess, he would fall all to ashes without the dark; but he reached for the light, he wanted the Sunshine, though he didn't know it yet. He dreamt of the Sunshine faded long ago and far away, and not the morning Sunshine that would take him from her…

Dru moaned faintly, rocking herself and fighting the tears that fell down her cheeks. Her Spike would be so sad, to see her cry. He hated to see her cry. She tried to be a brave, good girl for him, but nothing pleased him anymore. Not since Paris. She'd always loved Paris, but now all the toys were broken, and the shiny streets cracked beneath her. They made her dark prince fly. He was well and truly caught, and soon he would fade away all together. He'd always loved her so gently, protected her after her Daddy and Grand-mum left; how was she to go on without him?

"Princess?" Spike's soft voice came out of the air behind her, startling Dru into her demon face. She turned her head to look upon her only surviving Childe, her dark prince. He was so lovely, but not hers anymore. He was fading away as she watched. She'd taken her sweet boy to her breast, freed him from worries and loneliness, but the pixies hadn't told her another crawling thing lived inside him, slithering and sliding and making him shake and quiver. No one lived who knew, until she'd spotted the white witch in a café, and knew the white lady would take her Spike along the bumpy road.

Drusilla smiled, smiling would make him happy. Inside, she ached. He had been a present from her Daddy, a boy of her very own, no need to share with Grand-mum. She hadn't seen his hurt. That the slithery-thing would make him wail and curse himself. It was hard to see, until the white lady had released it. Now it was always there, keeping all his beautiful destruction locked inside. It was almost as bad as the spark they'd shoved into her Daddy. Her lovely boy would not play in pools of blood with her anymore, wouldn't hold her head under the water, which was such fun. But she tried to accept and be good, because this was the truth of her Spike, her dark prince, her William. He was who he was, now.

Dru closed her eyes and tried to be happy as Spike sat beside her and pulled her into his arms. She tried, but she wasn't happy anymore. Her prince was going away to a land of Sunshine and lollipops, just like in the pretty songs; he was going to be with the other slithery demons, under the other side of the sun. Drusilla could not follow, because her Spike would belong there, and she would not. Just like he no longer belonged here with her.

She sighed and breathed in the comforting smell of her boy. She missed her Daddy. He would make it all better. Daddy would take care of her when Spike had gone. He had to. He was her Daddy. No spark could make that go away.


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: Hello, anyone home out there? I'm not seeing any reviews, people. A little encouragement gets you another chapter. So, if you like this one, please let me know.

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Chapter 4

Jill smiled as William opened the car door for her. He usually let it go, but his manners were better when he was nervous. "It's going to be okay, Spike. We'll just explain to them that we're here to help if they want, and we'll stay out of their way if they don't, and then we'll get right out of there. There's no need to delve into…Unpleasantness."

Spike smiled lopsidedly at his companion. "And as great as that sounds, you're bloody off your nut if you think that's how things are gonna play out. Watcher'll make a case outta me bein' around, gonna wanna analyze me until I'm bored to tears, might try an' stake me…" The vampire's smile faded as he spoke. "Then again, maybe I should let him." Jill opened her mouth to reprimand his idiocy, but before she got a word out, Spike continued. "But I'm not bloody gonna. Tosser'll get knocked flat on his ass he comes near me."

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In the library, Joyce Summers sat in stunned silence as the handsome, mild-mannered librarian and her daughter's two friends explained to her about vampires and Buffy's mission to slay them. She'd be more skeptical if she hadn't heard the story before, in LA; but that didn't mean she wanted to believe it now any more than she'd wanted to believe it then.

"But, why Buffy?" Joyce asked once she recovered her voice. "Can't somebody else…Slay the…Vampires? I don't want Buffy to be this…Slayer. She's not allowed. I'll ground her!" Joyce's voice hardened defiantly.

Rupert sighed. They didn't seem to be getting through to her. "I understand your frustration, Ms. Summers, but the fact of the matter is, Buffy was chosen by higher powers; this is her sacred duty. It's inescapable, I'm afraid." He watched Joyce watch Buffy, noting the tears in their eyes. He wished he could make this easier on them. "Now, before it gets too late, I'd like to discuss the research I did today. I received a mysterious visitor last night; Buffy, I believe it may have been your 'friend' Angel."

"Tall, dark hair, broad shoulders, sticks to the shadows?" Buffy asked quickly, her interest peaked at the mention of the mysterious hottie.

"Er, yes, I rather believe that covers it." Giles took his glasses off and cleaned them as he continued. "He told me to research William the Bloody, as he would be coming here today."

Buffy shifted nervously in her seat. "You mean, our William? The weird vampire who helped us kill the other vamps doing their ritual thing at the Bronze? He's called William the Bloody? Well, that can't be good."

Xander piped up. "Seriously, he seemed more like a Billy Idol, than a William the Bloody."

"He stole the look from me, you know?" Five heads turned to find the vampire and witch standing just inside the library doors. After a few seconds of standoff, where Buffy and Giles both tensed up, Spike sauntered forward. "Well, I see my reputation precedes me." He came to a stop a few feet from the group, striking a defiant pose. "Don't suppose those books of yours said anything good about me?"

Giles slipped a stake out of his pocket, holding it up where everyone could see. "You've killed two Slayers." He bit out, wishing he'd had more time to warn the group. Shocked gasps flew from their mouths, and Joyce and Buffy both paled noticeably.

"Rupert." Jill stepped forward, positioning herself in front of Spike. "I'm sorry you found out before we had a chance to tell you, but there's nothing for it now. You'll simply have to trust that we are here to help…"

"I don't want that monster anywhere near Buffy!" Giles declared savagely. Buffy noticed the vampire's jaw tense, almost as if his feelings had been hurt, but his expression revealed nothing. "I don't know what kind of game you're playing here, but I suggest you forget it. You and your mysterious friend can both stay the hell away from us!"

"Friend?" Spike arched his scarred eyebrow, rocking back on his heels. "Who's 'at, then?"

Buffy suddenly found her voice. "Angel. You know, the big, cryptic guy who warned me about the Harvest. Isn't he with you?"

"Angelus?" Jill's voice squeaked, and she wobbled a bit. They'd been looking for Angelus for close to a year, but after all the research she'd done and the stories she'd heard, she would have been just as happy not to find him.

"Angelus!" Giles gasped. There was a vampire he'd no need to research. Tales of Angelus were famous within the Council. "Are you quite sure?"

Spike sighed, and rubbed Jill's back soothingly, a gesture lost on no one. "It's possible. Especially if he's informed of vampire goings-on. It may be hard to tell him from a human; some gypsies stuffed a human soul inta him 'round the turn of the century. But, that's neither here nor there, I can handle Angelus. My sire and I 'ave been lookin' for him for a while now."

Giles sputtered, dropping his stake. Three master vampires of renown settling on the Hellmouth couldn't be a good thing. Even if one of them did allegedly have a soul. Who'd ever heard of a vampire with a human soul? "Drusilla is alive?" Rupert was sure his voice had squeaked, but he was in full fledged panic mode, wondering how he was going to get his Slayer out of this alive.

Spike smirked at the panic and fear radiating off of the Watcher, and the nervousness and curiosity coming from the others. It was nice to be respected. "Well, no, Watcher. She's a vampire. More 'n a hundred and fifty years, now."

Jill elbowed him in the ribs, surprising most of the other occupants of the room. "William, stop taunting the Watcher. Now, let's say what we need to say, and go." She glared at her vampire companion, and while he found it more charming than scary, Spike allowed himself to be steered.

"Right. So, here's the deal. My sire…Dru's sick, yeah? Needs her Sire, Angelus. Been chasing after the wanker a long time now, and this is the first time we've gotten close. Since I'm here, I'm willing to help out; slay the nasties, help train your little girl there, whatever. In return for my help, and Jill's if you need her, you leave Dru and I alone. Unless, of course, she slips and kills someone. Can't rightly fault you for going after her then. Of course, you kill my sire, I can't promise not to come after you." He met Rupert's and Buffy's eyes, seeing confusion and hesitation in them.

"So, what, you'll leave me alone if I leave your girlfriend alone; but if I do my job and kill her, I'm toast?" Buffy had secretly hoped to get a slay buddy out of this meeting, and possibly the number of the cute alley-lurker. Now, her potential slay buddy was threatening her, and her potential date was maybe a vampire. She was not a happy Slayer.

"That's about the size of it, Slayer." He nodded in Buffy's direction, smirking at her defiance. She was a cheeky little bird, he'd give her that. He'd noticed she was out of shape, though. She wouldn't make it long if she didn't start training up a bit. " 'S not like Dru's gonna hurt your lot, yeah?"

"And why should we believe you, blood breath?" Xander sneered. The guy seemed alright, but vampires had kidnapped, and likely eaten, his best friend. What made one vampire different from the other?

"Well," Spike sighed. "Technically, you shouldn't, right? I'm a vampire, not the bloody ice cream man. But, I am honest. Never liked those mind games Angelus used to play. That's what drove poor Dru bug-shagging, you know? If I meant to kill you, I'd tell you."

Joyce's faintly murmured, "Mind games?" went unanswered, as the group focused on Buffy's response.

What she'd heard was possibly the creepiest thing he could have said, but it calmed Buffy, actually. She'd met a few master vampires now, and she always did better with the ones who just fought her, instead of playing stupid tricks. "Wait, Angel drove her what, exactly? Are we sure this is the same guy, cause he didn't seem that bad to me. Okay a little creepy, but it's always creepy when you meet people in alleys."

Spike rolled his eyes. Great, another bird smitten with the gigantic poof. He'd never understand what they saw in the wanker. Rupert took his glasses off for another clean, and replaced them before cutting off the vampire to give his own reply. "Drusilla is said to be quite mad, although there is no record of who or what caused her condition. She was a postulant at a convent before she was turned, and was purported to have been a normal young woman at the time."

"A Whostulant?" Xander asked.

"A junior nun in training." Jill responded. "And I don't see why it matters. The part you seem to not be understanding is that this guy turned an innocent girl into a crazed killer; and don't get me wrong, I like Drusilla, but that woman put the bonk in bonkers. And if what we're all assuming is correct, the same guy is after your Slayer."

Rupert narrowed his eyes at the seemingly human woman, still placed protectively in front of the vampire's chest. "So far, Miss Walker, this Angel person has done nothing to harm Buffy in the least. He warned her that the Harvest was coming, and he warned me of William's history."

"He's stalking her. That's how he always starts." Spike cut in, before he had to listen to the Watcher extol the virtues of the great lunk who'd made his life miserable. "You met him in an alley, you said?" He arched an eyebrow at the Slayer, who nodded hesitantly. "Let me take a wild guess. He followed you, and wouldn't have approached, but you spotted him. He was either very sweet and coy, or sarcastic and mocking. Trying to get your blood to race, you know, so he could really hear it. Once he knows you're paying attention, he drops the warning. Then he gives you a gift, something to show that he knows a bit about who you are…"

Buffy felt like she was drowning. It had felt strange at the time, but in an only-slightly-stalkerish way. Not in a vampire-stalking-prey kind of way. "So, that's Angelus, huh?" She whispered shakily. "Is he here to kill me, you think?"

Spike frowned. He hadn't meant to scare the girl; well, not much anyway. "Don't think so, ducks. Not unless that soul of his has slipped the leash, and I think I'd have heard something about it, if it had. No, what I think is, he wants to be near you for some other reason. But it's in his nature to be secretive; and you'll never see Angelus get into a fight he doesn't know he can win. That's likely why he warned you about the Harvest, but didn't come 'round to help." Spike ran a hand through his hair, feeling frustrated and awkward, and suffering from a desperate need to pace and smoke. This meeting was not going according to plan.

"Look, this is all coming out wrong, I think. I don't mean to say he's truly dangerous, because I don't know one way or the other. When we lived together as an order, he was everyone's worst nightmare. When Dru and I found him the last time, about 15 years ago, he was living off animal blood and steering clear of humans. If it's him, coming out of hiding to consult with the Slayer, I don't know what to think. He could be dangerous, or not, or you could have some human stalker with a similar name for all I know. Point I was trying for was, be careful around him, keep your guard up, and you're gonna wanna train up your vamp-sense a bit more, so you can detect the demon past the soul."

The urge became unbearable, and Spike began to pace. "If it is Angelus, this makes my job much easier, actually. Just snatch the bugger, convince him to help Dru, find the spell to cure her, and I can be on my merry way."

"William, we can't leave Dru on the Hellmouth." Jill said quietly, with a lot more calm than she was feeling right then. "It's far too dangerous. If we can cure her, we're still going to have to get her out of the country."

"And I still don't see why Angelus can't take responsibility for her." Spike's voice raised in anger, causing everyone except Jill to tense. "I've been with her for years, and ever since…" His voice trailed off, and he kicked an empty chair in his anger, causing Willow and Joyce to shriek. "How come when he got his soul, he never bloody cleaned up the mess he made? If he really wanted to help the buggering humans, he should've just staked us, instead of running off."

Giles raised his eyebrow in response to the vampire's words. His curiosity was peaked, and he was taking frenzied mental notes. Rupert wondered if this vampire wasn't ensouled himself; or suffering under the control of the woman, as was his original theory. He seemed far too human to be the fiendish killer described in the journals.

Willow shakily raised her hand, as though they were in class. "Um, excuse me, but why would it be particularly dangerous to leave…Drusilla? here? Wouldn't Buffy just stake her?"

Spike opened his mouth to reply, but Jill shut him up with a look, and turned her attention to the group. "Dru, as we've pointed out, is insane. She hears voices, talks to the pixies; the works. Her control is no better than a fledgling's. She can't hunt without killing, and she tends to create a large number of fledglings if left to her own devices. Also, she's a seer, and has inclinations towards black magic. She might hear a voice that tells her it would be fun to open the Hellmouth, or see that you were about to defeat a powerful demon and prevent it. She also has a very powerful thrall. She can look into your mind, and make you see visions so lovely you'll beg her to bite you, and be glad to tell her whatever she wants you to say."

Spike shook his head. "It's entirely possible the Slayer could take her; Dru's not much of a fighter. Then again, the Slayer could die horribly. It's pretty much a toss up."

Giles glared at the vampire, his anger fading in the face of his outrage. "And you want to leave her here in Sunnydale? So, now you've stooped to having your paramour do your dirty work, is that it?"

"Oi, none of that now, I'm here to give you fair warning we're in town, after all. And you, Watcher, should know nothing in life is certain." Spike shrugged and started pacing again, his hands in his pockets. "If the Slayer's any good, she'll make it. And I've done my time with Dru, thanks ever so. It's about bloody time someone else had the pleasure. I just want it over with, so I can go on to other things. Angelus is her sire; he should be carin' for her during her illness, he should help restore her to health. She's never gonna be well enough mentally not to be a danger, but with a firm hand and some heavy chains she can be controlled. No reason to let her dust if there's a vamp willin' to keep an eye on her."

"So, what happens if Angelus, or Angel, won't help her?" Buffy asked. There were a lot of confusing gray areas in this situation, but the one of the things that stood out in her mind was that William seemed to care about this Drusilla, even though he wanted to give her to Angel. The other thing that stood out was that William was right, Angel should have stopped his childer from killing when he got a soul. Even without knowing for sure, she'd placed the mysterious Angel in the box labeled Master Vampire, and sadly given up her passing interest in him.

Spike sighed, and came to an abrupt halt slumped against the banister of the stairs. "If Angelus won't help cure her, then Drusilla dies. We've exhausted every other option. Two years we've been searching for a cure. This is the last chance. She might hang on for a while, maybe even another decade, but eventually this illness will kill her."

His tone was tight with anger and frustration, yet Buffy wasn't scared of him anymore. This was a man preparing to lose a loved one. Okay, well he wasn't really a man, but he sure seemed like one in that moment.

"How awful." Joyce murmured. She'd become caught up in this man's anger and sadness, and felt deep sympathy for him, having to tend his dying friend. She didn't understand the concept of sires and childer, so she couldn't grasp how painful it truly was.

Spike snorted. "I appreciate the thought, madam, but I wouldn't waste your pity on Dru, or myself for that matter. You understand that we've killed more humans than you'll probably ever meet, yeah?"

Joyce Summers shivered in discomfort and fear. She couldn't make peace with her own nearly 40 years, let alone three times that, which he had mentioned as the woman's lifespan. One person a day was a conservative estimate of a vampire's diet, she remembered that from what Mr. Giles had said earlier. For two vampires, that was thousands of people. Still, she felt a tug of pity for this monster with a human face. Unable to express her conflicted feelings, Joyce simply nodded.

Jill took the stack of handouts she'd prepared from her bag, and passed them across the table towards Giles. "I think William and I have said all we need to say to you tonight; here are some notes I had prepared; for some reason I thought we'd be able to have a civilized conversation, but I guess that was too much to hope for." Giles grunted a response and refused to look at the papers before him. Willow took one packet for herself, and passed another to Joyce at the urging of the older woman. Jill sighed, and removed another piece of paper from her bag. "Here's our address and phone number, in case you need us for anything. Feel free to drop by if there's an emergency." The woman nodded and smiled sadly as she turned to go.

Spike glared defiantly at the Watcher who'd upset his friend, and insulted him. "You see Angelus, tell him Spike's looking for him, he can ask around at Willie's Alibi Room. Otherwise, stay away from me and mine."

"William!" Jill hissed, turning back to the group in an attempt to diffuse the situation.

"No." Spike's voice boomed through the library, making the humans' skin crawl. "He's just proven what I said all along. You can't trust Watchers, they're no good." He turned his piercing gaze on Buffy, causing her heart to pound. "You ever want some real training, or need anything else from me, Slayer, just call. Same goes for your family." With that, the master vampire turned on his heel and stormed out of the library past the witch.

Jill froze in place, wondering how she could keep the Watcher and vampire from allowing their resentments to put all of them in danger. She took a moment to close her eyes and pray to Gaia and Athena for guidance, and as the Powers bathed her in a glow of knowledge, she opened her eyes to rest her gaze on the other humans, taking in information from their auras and their body language. With a minimal nod to the group, she turned to follow William out.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Since the encounter with William the Bloody, and the revelation of her Slayer status to her Mom, Buffy was sticking close to home. She'd patrolled every night, and she stopped by the library to report to Giles, but her biggest priority was spending more time with her mother. She'd even been helping at the Summers Gallery, which was not quite as awful as she expected.

In an effort to understand her daughter better, Joyce in return had devoted her spare time to reading about the world of Slayers and demons, and asking Buffy questions. She'd gone out on patrol with Buffy once, but was so disturbed by the experience that she never wanted to go again. Seeing her baby girl get attacked, and watching Buffy fight back so violently, was simply too much for her.

Buffy hadn't realized how much guilt she felt for lying to her mom, or how desperately she'd needed to talk about all the things she'd seen and experienced. It was a surprisingly heavy weight off her shoulders, the being honest and open. She didn't totally trust Giles yet, and it was good to hear Mom's opinions on stuff.

Joyce and Buffy both read the stack of papers Jill had left, and Joyce was surprised to learn that some of the information was completely new to Buffy, while other things directly contradicted what she'd been told by her Watchers. For example, Buffy had a great fear of being turned, and the new information indicated turning a Slayer was not possible. The most surprising thing they learned, new information for both of them, was that being a Slayer had genetic links.

They began to spend their mother-daughter time together compiling genealogical information, and were surprised to find they worked well together, and that with the right incentive Buffy was a competent researcher. After they'd gone as far as they could, they confronted Buffy's father, Hank Summers; to see if he could shed some light on the history of his family. So far, they hadn't found anything in Joyce's family tree, although that wasn't surprising considering how little information there was on her ancestry.

During Hank's fortunately-brief visit to Sunnydale, Buffy and Joyce were both shocked to discover he'd known he carried the genes, and that if he had a daughter there was a chance she'd be Called, and had even been informed by a cousin when Buffy _was_ Called. He'd never said anything about it before to either of them. Then, he told them he couldn't deal with watching his daughter die, and he wanted out of their lives. He thought of the Slayer genes as abnormal, and all he wanted was to be just like everyone else. Buffy could take her world saving, he didn't want to deal with it.

Buffy was inconsolable at first, though Joyce insisted Hank was a worthless coward and they were better off without him. After a few days Buffy calmed, but remained sullen and hurt.

"I just don't understand it." She told Willow and Xander at lunch on Wednesday. "He tried to have me institutionalized the first time I told him I was the Slayer. Why would he do that if he knew I was telling the truth?"

Willow rubbed her friend's shoulder soothingly. Buffy had been through a rough few weeks; it was a good thing she had her mom's support. "I think, it's like when the police say we have a gang problem, when we really have a vampire problem. People see what they want to see."

"So he'd rather see a daughter who was crazy, or a juvenile delinquent, instead of the Slayer?" Buffy pouted. "It's just not fair. It's not like this is my fault, or anything. His genes put me in the running, so really it's his fault I was Chosen, and he's totally blaming me for it!"

Xander shook his head sadly. He could sympathize with parents blaming you for stuff that wasn't your fault. "Sometimes parents are really stupid, Buff. But, you know, maybe your mom will meet a guy who's rich and does martial arts, and he'll totally love having the Slayer for a daughter, and buy you really nice weapons."

Buffy laughed. It was a nice fantasy, and she was grateful to Xander for trying to cheer her up, but reality didn't work like that. Hank had never given his approval easily, and then he bailed at the first opportunity. Her parents thought they'd hidden it from her, but she knew her dad had an affair with someone at work. Then she got Chosen, and he left for good. Her first Watcher had never made a secret of the fact that he disapproved of her, and although she won his grudging respect after a while, he'd never been kind or affectionate.

There was probably something about being the Slayer that made men unable to love her. Sure; Xander had a crush on her, and Giles had never exactly been mean, and William and Angel had both given her some help; but maybe they were exceptions. Or, and the thought made Buffy's insides clench, maybe they didn't know her well enough. Maybe if she let them see the real Buffy, they'd leave like Hank and Merrick had.

* * *

Angel paced his dark loft, wondering what to do about the Slayer. Whistler had been adamant; Angel should settle in Sunnydale and assist the Slayer with her mission. When he got to the Hellmouth and found his sire was in town, he'd backed off of his original plan to confess his history to the little blonde, fearing he would be asked to go after Darla. He might resent his sire, he was sickened by the memories of their years together, but that didn't mean he wanted to kill her. He'd contented himself with following the Slayer, and warning her of The Master's plans for the Harvest.

After Darla dusted (Angel suspected Spike was the culprit there) he'd gone back and forth about what to do next. Warning the Watcher about Spike seemed like the best idea. But now, Spike and his human friend were holed up in a house not far from the high school, and he hadn't seen either of them for days. Angel couldn't seem to find out if Drusilla was in town, and there had actually been a sharp decrease in the murder rate since Spike arrived. He had nothing to back up his wish to see Spike dusted, other than his demon's desire to avenge Darla.

The Watcher, Rupert Giles, had somehow blocked his ability to enter the high school library, although he could still enter the rest of the school. Angel had tried twice to speak to the man again, and both times he'd been rebuffed and threatened with staking. How the Englishman knew he was a vampire was anybody's guess.

Trying to talk to Buffy wasn't working out any better. The one night he'd caught up with her on patrol, she'd had her mother with her, of all things. She hadn't been at the Bronze in more than two weeks, and she'd kept the window in her bedroom that was accessible by tree locked at all times. He suspected it had been nailed shut.

So, what was he supposed to do to help, exactly? He thought if he caught Buffy and Mr. Giles together they would listen to him, but without access to the library he didn't know how to manage that. Buffy had left the school before sunset every night he'd been looking for her, her patrol pattern was erratic and unpredictable, and she never stayed out long. He'd gone to her house one night at sunset, thinking he'd convince her to talk with him, but Buffy had appeared with another girl and her mother in tow, and all three got in the car and drove off. None of them returned before sunrise.

The last thing he wanted was to approach Spike and ask about his meeting with the Slayer and the extra precautions Buffy was taking. Spike might know how to get to her, but the information was sure to come at a price. He could try camping out in Buffy's yard again, but it hadn't worked out well last time, and it was boring. He could patrol more often, and hope he ran into her; after all, killing demons would help, right? His only other options were to accost the Watcher forcefully, or to hide in the school basement so he could approach Buffy and Mr. Giles during the day. Both might get him dusted.

None of them were good choices, and Angel was getting frustrated. How was he supposed to help, when the Slayer wouldn't even talk to him?

And why wasn't Spike killing people like a normal vampire?


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: Another short Chapter, please let me know what you think, or you're not getting a longer one. So there!

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Chapter 6

Spike rubbed his forehead, trying to ease away the tension. Whoever had said vampires couldn't get headaches had obviously been barmier than Dru, who was the source of his current pain. The weary vampire was walking down the stairs toward the kitchen to get a snack, when the doorbell rang.

"Better not be a sodding Jehovah's Witness." He muttered, as he detoured down the hall to answer the front door. To his surprise, he was greeted by the Slayer; her Watcher and mother waiting behind her like anxious parents. "Well, well; what have we here?" Spike smiled toothily, and nearly laughed when the Watcher grabbed Buffy's shoulders to pull her away from him. He didn't have the heart to tell the nervous humans the windows on the porch were treated with necrotempering; the sun might feel warm out here, but it wouldn't keep them safe. As much fun as it was to scare them, though, he was interested in helping out. It was best to be nice, up to a point. "Well, come in. I was just going to get myself some lunch, you're welcome to join me."

In the interest of appearing non-threatening, Spike turned away and headed back toward the kitchen. After a few seconds, he heard the telltale noise of the threesome entering the darkened hallway and shutting the door behind them. Satisfied that the humans weren't there to kill him, he knocked on Jill's office door on his way past. At her muffled "Come," he eased the door open to reveal the Watcher, Slayer, and the Slayer's mother who had joined him there.

"Hey, Jilly-bean, look what the cat brung in." Spike motioned to the group. "I was just on my way to get some lunch. You should come eat with us. You're getting thin again."

Jill rolled her eyes, pushing her chair back from the desk. "Please, spare me the lecture about societal ideals of beauty and human body chemistry, alright?"

The vampire was already walking towards the kitchen again, and his reply was muffled. The hall filled with a burst of light as Spike entered the kitchen, and it seemed even darker as the door slid shut behind him. As Buffy directed her attention away from where the vampire had disappeared, to the strange woman coming toward them, she caught Giles' frown out of the corner of her eye.

"Hello." Jill smiled at them. "Buffy, Buffy's Mom…"

"Joyce." The woman in question supplied.

The witch smiled. "Yes, sorry, Joyce…And Rupert; it's nice to see you again. Come right this way; if I don't get in there and supervise, he's liable to burn something." Jill turned to follow Spike into the kitchen, but was stopped by Giles' voice.

"I am very interested to know, Ms. Walker, how a former student of the Devon Coven came to socialize with two of history's most infamous vampires." It wasn't a question, but there was a wealth of curiosity in Giles' voice.

Jill turned to face them. "Someday, Rupert, I may appease your curiosity. For now, just know they are my friends, and no harm will come to you within these walls. I'm sure you came here for a reason, and if it is within my power I'll help, but before we get too bogged down in details, we must join William." She headed down the hall, trusting, as the vampire had, that they would follow.

Buffy snorted and glared at her Watcher. "Giles, I came here to ask for their help. I know you're not totally on board with this, but if you could please not piss anyone off more than you need to, I'd totally appreciate it." With that, the young Slayer hurried to follow Jill into the kitchen.

Giles sighed, but nodded Joyce ahead of him. He pushed open the door, following Buffy and Joyce into a large, sunny kitchen. Rupert wondered if the vampire had left to find another shady spot, until Spike emerged from a door across the room, carrying an armful of food towards the sunny countertop. As he gaped at the vampire, Spike pushed aside a sheer lavender curtain and examined the back yard. "I told you we shouldn't have put that bird-feeder up; the squirrels are in it again." He dropped the curtain, shaking his head as he crossed to the refrigerator. "I was thinking of making fried sandwiches; how does that strike you lot?"

Spike turned back to the group, and found Giles standing near the hallway door, gaping at him, Buffy seated at the large oak table watching with interest as he moved around, while Joyce and Jill sat to the Slayer's left, quietly discussing the house and its décor. Shaking his head, Spike turned back to the fridge and pulled out more food. "Well, would anyone care for a drink? Coffee, tea, juice, milk, scotch?" He pivoted on his heel, revealing a canister of red fluid to the Watcher and Slayer who observed him. "I'd offer to share, but something tells me you lot aren't all that into the O-pos." With a wicked grin, he darted for the cabinet closet to Giles, making the Watcher gasp and stumble out of his path. When he turned and motioned to the Watcher with the oversized mug he'd retrieved, Spike had the full attention of all four humans. "So, anyone for coffee or tea?"

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"Well, as I understand it, Buffy's main concern is with training, although I don't know that she needs the extra assistance. She did manage to kill the Anointed One on her own, but then again, the Master will inevitably…"

Spike cut Giles off. "The Anointed One's not dead. I am a bit in the know, despite keeping to myself like I do. He's safe with the Master, likely won't be separated 'till it's time for them to strike at the Slayer again, yeah?"

"What do you mean, the Anointed One's not dead? I staked that Andrew guy with my own stake!" Buffy was horrified by the idea that, if she had staked an imposter, she'd now have to fight the real anointed vampire.

"Well, luv, I don't know who all you staked. Whoever he was, the bloke's not important. Thing is, the Anointed One had to be pure before he was turned. Pure good transformed into pure evil. So, that narrows your options, a bit. You're looking for a boy under 18, most likely a little kid, mum took him to church, never did a bit of wrong." Spike dunked half of his fried peanut butter and banana sandwich in his mug of blood, and took a huge bite. He chewed thoughtfully, looking off into space. "Mind my asking how you figured this other bloke was the Anointed One?" He asked once his mouth was clear.

Giles cleared his throat, toying with what was left of his Swiss cheese and tomato sandwich. "Well, there was a prophecy that told of the coming of the Anointed One; it said that five would die, and one would rise. There was a bus crash, during which five passengers died, one of which was Andrew Borba, a convicted murderer, and…"

"And you assumed he was the best candidate because he was already a killer." Spike sat back in his chair, taking a quick sip of his blood. "That's just typical, you know. As though only bad people get turned into bloody vampires. It's easy for the Council to sit on their high horse; strong blood can't be turned, but it's just as easy as blinking to take that protection away. And, if a bloke does get turned, then he must have been a bad seed to start with, no matter who he was or what he did before they started messing with him." The vampire was working up a real head of steam when Jill gently touched his hand to get his attention. Spike grumbled a bit as he relaxed.

"Despite all of our differences." Jill looked back and forth between the vampire and the Watcher. "I think we can agree that our main goal is to keep Buffy safe and alive for as long as possible, and to make sure that whatever The Master has planned next doesn't come to pass. The third priority, I believe, is hunting down Angelus and curing Drusilla; and we can argue about that and about a million other things, but we can all agree to work together on the first two, right?"

Spike, Buffy, and Joyce all nodded, and four sets of eyes fell on Giles as he struggled with his decision. He was sure this had to go against every rule the Council had ever enacted, and truthfully he was a bit offended at Spike's scathing descriptions of his life's work, but he was in the field, and he had to make an independent decision based on what he knew to be true and what was going on in his Slayer's life.

Giles was the first to admit he'd allowed Buffy more freedom than he should. He'd gotten the idea from her first Watcher, who had described her as 'a force of nature, not easily swayed by rules, but willing and able to set and accomplish goals in training and on patrol'. So far, all of that had proven to be true, excepting the period when she had not trained in favor of spending time with her mother. Even when she hadn't trained, she had still reported on her patrols, and he was pleased to note that as Buffy and Joyce spent time learning about the Slayer's calling, she had read about many demon species, enough that she could name most of the things she slayed.

Perhaps, he didn't need to take the Council-approved road in order to be on the right one. William and Jill had presented him with other options, other ways of looking at the situation. He wouldn't say he was converted just yet, but he was willing to learn.

Rupert nodded, and raised his eyes to the rest of the group. "Agreed. Keeping Buffy safe, and defeating The Master for good are our priorities. The question is, who has the most trustworthy information, and what do we do with it?"

The white witch smiled at the Watcher, tossing her long hair over her shoulder. "Excellent, Rupert, I'm certain it will be a pleasure to work with you. So, first thing's first; gathering up as much info as we can on The Master as quickly as possible. There are three days this year and one day next fall when it will be possible for him to rise, or escape his captivity, or whatever. At least, according to my research. Of course, that doesn't count any of the more obscure rituals we haven't discovered yet. The first of those days is in two months, so we'd better get cracking."


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

"That's it, Slayer, keep your knee extended as you swing around, then snap your foot down as you complete the turn. Good, a little off balance, but you'll find your center as you practice. Go again. Make sure to keep your senses on point, you should know where I am at all times." Spike circled the petite Slayer, who was supposed to be focused on perfecting her spin kick.

She'd been improving steadily over the last two weeks, but today she'd looked inexplicably shaky when she showed up, so they were working on form. When her confidence had not returned by the fifth kick routine he guided her through, Spike had to face facts. Something was wrong with the Slayer.

"Alright, let's take a breather, shall we?" Spike dropped to the exercise mat-covered floor near Buffy's feet, and the Slayer contemplated him warily for several seconds before she joined him. The vampire waited for the teenager to grab a water bottle and take a few drinks before he attempted to question her. "So, Buffy, wanna tell me what's bothering you? Seem a bit off your game today, pet."

Buffy shrugged, in a failed effort to appear nonchalant. "It's no big. Just some wacky stuff going on at school this week. A bunch of kids got possessed by Hyena spirits; and they ate the school mascot, and the principal, and Xander…" Buffy paused, and her face tightened. "Xander…He attacked me…And I didn't wanna hurt him, because he's my friend, but he was stronger than normal, and he wouldn't get off of me, and he said these awful things…"

Spike watched the girl he had come to admire shake, tears in her eyes, and he filled in the blanks. And he got pissed. He'd never in his life forced a woman. He'd seduced, sure, and he'd had no problem hurting them once they'd agreed, or killing them as he got off; but to violate a woman that way…It was so wrong that even a soulless vampire knew it.

"Miserable whelp; you killed him, didn't you? Because if not…"

"No!" Buffy practically shrieked. "There will be no killing of Xander. He was possessed, and…I stopped him before he did more than beat on me and make some yucky lewd remarks… and…"

"And nothing. The whelp needs a good talking to, because if he gets away with trying to hurt you, he'll think he can get away with it again, on a girl who can't protect herself." Buffy shivered and averted her eyes, and Spike pressed on, trying to make her see sense.

"Luv, have you ever been possessed?" Buffy frowned and shook her head. "There are different types of demons and spirits that can possess a human. Some of them take total control, while others blend with the existing personality and only partially change it; for example the vampire demon, which enhances the need for violence, and heightens emotions like anger and passion, while taking away guilt. Someone needs to research the spirit, and find out how it affected him, then speak to the boy about it. No telling what he's capable of, if what he did was an effect of enhanced emotions he already had."

Buffy nodded, making an effort to calm down. "Okay, I see where you're going with this. Giles and Willow researched the hyena spirit when we were trying to figure out how to cure them, and Giles said he didn't remember anything after, so…"

"Umm, Slayer, I don't want to scare you…"

"I'm not scared!" Buffy glared at the vampire indignantly. "I've slain hundreds of vampires and demons, and the vampire that killed my first Watcher, there's no way I'm scared of…"

"Alright, alright, keep your shirt on." Spike made a calming gesture, clenching his teeth to keep from popping her one. She really was a stubborn, arrogant little thing. "I'm trying to be understanding, here, but you make it bloody difficult."

Buffy grinned a little at Spike's expression. He was pretty short tempered, and she thought his British curses were funny. "Sorry." Buffy got the smile under control, but didn't manage to sound very repentant.

Spike sighed. "Look, it was a very personal thing, getting attacked by a friend, and a sexual attack at that. I get why it's making you a bit barmy. Thing is, he should remember something, no matter what crawled inside 'im. So, either he was so traumatized he blocked it out, or your Watcher is covering for him. I can understand him being just as upset and embarrassed as you are, in his own way, but that doesn't give him the right to lie to you. Need to be able to rely on him for backup, can't do that if you can't trust him."

The Slayer nodded. Part of the reason Xander's attack was still bothering her was his lack of remorse. And while he couldn't express remorse if he didn't remember what he'd done, Buffy had begun to take more notice of the way he looked at her, and she wasn't convinced anymore that he'd forgotten, no matter what she tried to believe. Spike was right, she couldn't trust Xander until they resolved this.

"So, what do you think I should do?" Buffy hung her head, playing with her hands in her lap. Spike had earned her respect, but on some level she still felt weird having conversations with the vampire. Now that she was calmer, awkwardness had set in.

"Well…How 'bout, when you stop by to train again, you bring your little friends. Jill can hang about and entertain them, and she can add her observations to mine. She's good with the auras and such."

Buffy nodded. She liked Jill, even if she hadn't spent a lot of time with her. She'd avoided the Wiccan today, because Jill's perceptive abilities freaked Buffy out. Last week, when Angel cornered her on patrol and she came to the house after, Jill had bundled her into the study and begun making cocoa before Buffy said more than 'hi'. It was nice to be understood, but Buffy wigged a little when Jill could repeat an entire conversation she hadn't been present for.

"Yeah, okay, I'll do that. So, umm, do you wanna train some more?" Buffy was ready to move on, maybe this time she'd do a better job of burying her reaction to the near-rape.

"Nah, pet, why don't we take it easy for a while. We'll hang about, you can finish your homework, and once it gets dark we'll do some distance running, search the far edges of town for vamp nests. I'll even let the Watcher come along and observe. Sound good?"

Buffy rolled her eyes. Once Spike got over the whole 'what the bloody hell is a Slayer doing in high school' thing, courtesy of her mom giving the vampire a good talking to, he got serious about her doing homework. He and Jill even convinced Giles to reduce her training schedule, so she had more time and energy for 'lessons', as Spike called them.

"Sure, Teach. Homework, woo." Buffy stood and grabbed her backpack, hauling it towards the room where Jill had set up a place for Buffy to study. The room was a greenhouse, Spike and Jill called it the 'solarium'. All of the windows were done in the special vampire-proof glass the front porch had, so Spike felt free to check on her. It was sunny and filled with plants and wicker furniture with over-stuffed pillows, and Buffy loved it. Whenever she entered, she felt like she'd been transported back in time. It almost made homework bearable.

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Spike got up and put the mats away, before heading up to check on Drusilla. His poor fragile plum had been stuck in bed for the better part of a month now, and between working with the Slayer and nursing his Sire, Spike hadn't had much time to hunt down Angelus. Buffy's confrontation with 'Angel' the previous week had given him some clues to work with, but so far they hadn't managed to locate him again.

Evidently, the old brooder had finally confessed his status as a souled vampire to Buffy, and made some flowery speech about the Powers That Be assigning him a mission to protect her. When she questioned him about what he'd been doing with his time since his soul was returned, how the ensouling had come about, and what his plans were for helping, he'd avoided her questions and tried to make her feel guilty for asking them. Buffy had been a wreck when she arrived on their doorstep. They'd had to call in Rupert and Joyce to calm her down.

If the wanker was trying to pull that shit on the Slayer, Spike suspected he wouldn't be willing to help Drusilla heal. And the saddest part of it was, Rupert had located the ritual they'd come to Sunnydale to find, and translated how to perform it. Spike suspected the Watcher was simply trying to get them to leave town, but the help was still appreciated, to the tune of a very expensive bottle of Scotch and an old book of vampire lore.

Spike opened the door of the darkened bedroom, to find the vampiress curled into a ball in the center of the bed. He remembered fondly the time when she'd been a sprawler, and a cover-hog, but these days she seemed to take up less and less space. Her body temperature had also begun to drop, though they kept her room very warm on the advice of a local shaman and demon doctor.

She would recover for short periods; the evening of the Harvest she'd wanted to hunt, and had to be chained. She'd actually snuck out of the house on him a few nights later. Still, it wasn't likely she'd last the decade without Angelus' help. She might be well enough to be out of bed again in a few days, but it wouldn't last.

He sat gently on the side of the bed, attempting not to disturb her sleep, but her eyes popped open. "My Spike." Drusilla smiled faintly. "You smell like Sunshine."

Spike shook his head, smiling faintly at Dru's nickname for the Slayer. Although she wasn't well enough to get out of bed and meet her supposed nemesis, Dru had taken an interest in the teenager, constantly asking questions about her. "Reckon her smell's all over the downstairs by this point. She was upset earlier, kicked up lots of hormones."

"The nasty boy upset her." Dru replied somberly. "He shall have no tea and cakes. He tries to take what is not meant for him." Drusilla's eyes fluttered shut again. "He will keep the dawn from coming, if his demon does not settle."

Spike frowned. As far as he knew; from talking to Buffy and the Watcher, and brief contact with her friends; the boy was human. Dru was likely referring to the recent bout of possession. Then again, there were many demons who could breed with humans, and Slayer blood seemed human enough. After the whelp's recent attack on the Slayer, it was something to look into.


	8. Chapter 8

In this Chapter: more canon-ish fallout from the previous chapter, and more Dru! Please let me know what you think, I'm flying without a Beta for this one.

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Chapter 8

Willow and Xander weren't thrilled with Buffy's suggestion that they join her for training the next day at the vampire's house, but Willow's curiosity and Xander's desire not to go home won out over their fear of Spike. The trio of teens went directly to the big house after school, Buffy letting them in with her key.

"Hello?" Buffy called out, out of politeness more than anything. She knew she was welcome to show up at any time here, for training or chat or cocoa.

Jill rushed into the foyer from her office. "Buffy! How was school?"

Buffy shrugged. "There was learning. From books, even. Jill, you remember Xander and Willow, right?"

Jill smiled and greeted the other teens, ushering all three of them into the brightly lit kitchen for a quick snack. As the foursome chatted and ate cookies, Jill got a feeling for the group dynamics and the teens' personalities. She was beginning to develop the sinking feeling that William had been right about Xander; the boy had secrets by the trainload, and a growing obsession with the Slayer.

Buffy was starting to get antsy. As much as she enjoyed spending time with her friends, she was used to getting a good workout and a boatload of her homework finished while she visited the witch and the vampire. This just hanging out thing was okay, but she was itching to get in some good violence, to get some of her own back after having her confidence shaken. Just when she was thinking of excusing herself, she was saved by the vampire.

Spike stalked in via the hallway leading to the ballroom where they trained, already barking out orders. "Summers! Hurry up and get your kit on, girl, this isn't the local diner for Christ's sake. We've got work to do." Without waiting for a response, he dug around in the fridge for his blood.

Buffy smiled brightly, her gaze barely touching on her friends. "Sorry guys, duty calls." With that, she rushed off to change, leaving her nervous friends in the presence of the vampire.

As his mug of blood heated in the microwave, Spike turned his gaze on the teenagers, enjoying the faint but potent bouquet of fear that clung to them. "So, Buffy told me there was an incident at the school the other day. How are the two of you feeling?"

Xander blanched noticeably, cementing instantly in the minds of the adults that his loss of memory was a big crock. Willow was nervous as well, but more about being put on the spot and asked her opinion by such a dangerous and ancient being. Well, not ancient, but to Willow anything over 40 was old; a hundred and (at least) thirty seven years seemed like forever.

"Well," Willow answered. "It was kind of scary, when Xander and those other kids started acting all weird, and I felt bad for the poor piggy they ate, and then we were all worried that we wouldn't be able to get them back to normal…So, yeah, it was all with the scary and nerve-wracking. We're better now, though. And, at least Xander didn't help kill poor principal Flutie. I'll miss having him around, he was nice. I don't know who they're going to get to be principal of a high school on the Hellmouth; the vice-principal turned them down, so…"

"Willow." Jill cut the young girl off. "Why don't you have a drink and let Xander answer? I'm sure he has a lot to say also, since he was the one possessed."

"Oh, but Xander doesn't remember anything from while he was a hyena…"

"Red, why don't you go see what's keeping the Slayer? Maybe she can give you a quick tour of the place before she starts her warm-ups." It was Spike's turn to cut her off, his gaze never straying from Xander, who smelled increasingly of fear.

Willow looked between the witch, the vampire, and her best friend, and decided to just do what they told her. It seemed like there was something serious going on here, and after yesterday's adventure she wasn't sure she wanted to be involved.

As Willow disappeared down the hallway after Buffy, Spike and Jill focused their attention on the pale teen at their kitchen table. "So, Xander, do you wanna tell us what happened when you were taken over by this Hyena demon thing?" Jill asked, sinking slowly into a chair across from the frightened young man. Spike twitched to get into the whelp's face and demand an explanation for how he could dare to defile the Slayer, but forced himself to step back and let Jill handle things. For now.

Xander looked from the obviously angry vampire to the serene witch, and caved like a house of cards in a windstorm. His words rushed out, his gaze fixed on the table before him. "I…I felt strong, full of power, you know? Like no one could take me. I wanted to show everyone; my Dad, the guys at school; that I wasn't gonna get stomped on anymore. When Buffy still didn't want strong-me, and she wanted to stop my fun, I got angry. That rage…It was like nothing I've ever felt before. It just consumed me. And then the…Fuzzy feelings I had for Buffy, they got all mixed up with the grr, and then there was badness."

"So what you're saying is that you lust after one of your best friends, and the second you were strong enough you tried to take what you wanted from her without her consent, and then you lied about remembering it to escape culpability." Spike bit out, clenching his hands into fists to keep from hitting the boy. So much for the stepping back plan.

"Culpability. Wow, you are pissed off, you broke out the big words." Jill teased, trying to defuse the tension. Both men ignored her.

Xander met the vampire's eyes, his mouth open to make a cutting remark about a hundred years of murder and mayhem in the vampire's past; and wasn't killing a Slayer worse than raping one, especially since she'd stopped him before he could complete the act. What he saw in Spike's face stopped him cold. The anger there was all out of proportion to having a student or friend attacked. "You're in love with her." He accused the vampire.

Spike shook his head. "Not like you're thinkin', whelp. In another life, Buffy would have been family. Wanna make sure she's got the support she needs to stay safe."

Xander blinked at the vampire, confused. "And I say huh, with the what?"

Spike didn't want to get into this, but to help Buffy he'd embarrass himself a little. "When I was…Alive, I was engaged. The girl died before we could get married. Buffy is descended from my former fiancé's little brother. So, we could have been related, if things were different. Point being, she's like a niece to me." _Yeah, Spike, pull the other one. Like you've never checked out those curves of hers. Like you've never wanted to kiss her when she does something that reminds you of Emily._

Xander sat quietly and absorbed that information, processing it in terms of the vampires he'd seen, and Jesse's disappearance. "So, okay, I get that you're a special kind of pissed at me. And you're right, I did a bad thing, that I feel awful about. But, remember, I was possessed by an animal spirit thingy at the time. When Giles said Buffy would move on quicker if I pretended not to know what I'd done, I jumped on the ol' bandwagon…'Cause, you know, the crippling guilt and humiliation and all."

Jill reached out and placed a gentle hand on Xander's arm. "Xander, the best thing you can do right now is to talk to Buffy, and apologize. Mr. Giles was wrong. She needs to know you're sorry before she can move on. She needs to be able to trust you."

Spike nodded. "Listen, whelp. The best thing we can do for Buffy is train her and get her a good strong support system; emotional support as well as fighting support. She wants you to be there for her, but if she can't put her faith in you, you're a liability. You need to get over those issues you have. And if she never sees you as more than a good buddy, you need to be able to be that friend and not get bitter or try to interfere with whatever bloke she does want to date."

Xander flushed and looked ready to speak up in his defense, but Jill cut him off. "Listen, we're not trying to be mean or kick you to the curb. We want what's best for Buffy. And right now, that's helping both of you get past this. Which is gonna mean a little work on your part. The question is, are you willing to do the work? Will you let us help you help Buffy?"

For a minute, the silence stretched across the kitchen. Xander sat still, the focus of a vampire and a witch, which was unnerving enough before you took into consideration that he was wrestling with his desire to help Buffy and his unwillingness to admit he had issues that needed dealing with.

After some soul searching, Xander realized there was only one thing he could do. He met Jill's eyes, and asked, "What do I do to make this right?"

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"And here we are, back in the foyer." Buffy threw her arms out in an expansive gesture, spinning to face Willow.

"It's a great house." Willow acknowledged. "Very homey, despite being huge. And not at all creepy, even if there are vampires living here."

Buffy nodded. "I'd show you the upstairs, but I don't wanna disturb Drusilla if she's sleeping. Spike would take my skin off."

"It's okay, I think one vampire social visit per day is my quota." Willow smiled at her friend. "Do you think we should head back? I mean, I don't wanna interrupt, but you need to get training, and Xander and I need to start on homework."

Buffy felt her heart lurch. She really didn't want to know how things were going with her other best friend and her vampire-kinda-friend, but it was time to suck it up and deal. "Yeah, I guess we'd better. I slacked yesterday; once Spike's done chewing Xander out, he's liable to start on me."

"Are you scared of Spike?" Willow asked. Sure, she'd been exposed to the vampire a few times before, and he'd never made a move to hurt her, but still…Vampire.

"Not scared in an 'eek, big bad' kind of way; more in a 'strict school teacher with a bad temper' way." Buffy stated somberly, leading her friend back towards her training room. The girls were so focused on their conversation, neither of them noticed the brunette vampire at the top of the stairs.

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Buffy and Xander were both surprised at how far a little talk went towards making them comfortable with each other again. Jill encouraged them just enough so it didn't take all day, while Spike and Willow observed, each stifling their urge to comment. Spike focused on ignoring his attraction to the young Slayer, while Willow stifled how hearing her crush talk about his fixation on another girl hurt.

Eventually the two central figures in the drama made their peace, and Willow and Xander went to the Solarium for homework, while Buffy and Spike went off to train and Jill started dinner.

Drusilla remained hovering at the top of the stairs until everyone had begun their self-appointed tasks, before she began her own. She felt much better today than she had in ever so long, and she hungered for something sweet and ripe, and fresher than the packaged blood Spike made her drink now. Something just a bit…Dishonest, and lusty. Fortunately for Dru, there were two prime candidates in the house.

Sneaking carefully through the front hall past the kitchen, skirting the old ballroom where she could hear the cheerful sounds of her sweet William fighting the Slayer, Dru made her way to the Solarium. Spike had explained to her that she was safe from the sun here, but she wasn't at all certain that the pixies weren't fooling him…They might just be waiting to burn her all to ashes. So she lurked quietly at the door, watching the teens read and write, and talk about their schoolwork.

She took a deep breath, scenting the girl's lust, the boy's anxiety…Such a heady mix of emotions. And they were so innocent. That made for the best type of snack. All she had to do was convince them to come to her…

Xander looked up from struggling with his math homework, and caught sight of the tall, pale woman in the doorway. He opened his mouth to warn Willow about the vampire, but before he could make a sound Drusilla caught him in her gaze.

Willow finished her explanation of how to calculate the missing angle in a triangle, looking up from her paper to make sure Xander had gotten it this time, and spotted his far-away gaze. "Xander!" She snapped, still a bit angry with him for the sneaky Buffy lusting. "Pay attention! You have a test tomorrow!"

"Hey, Will, why don't we take a break? Let's go see how Buffy's doing?"

If Willow hadn't been so angry with him, she might have noticed that Xander's voice was a little on the weirdness side, but she was angry and hurt, so she just grumbled to herself as they got up and headed towards the darkened hallway.

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Buffy felt Drusilla move closer, and almost got knocked off her feet in her distraction. "What in bloody hell's wrong now, Slayer?" Spike snapped. He knew Buffy wanted the whelp in her life, that she considered him a good friend, but he'd have much preferred it if she'd kicked the lying little git to the curb.

"Dru's downstairs." Buffy replied, backing away from him, towards the door. "Maybe I should go say hi, you know? Maybe I should warn Willow and Xander? They might freak, you know?"

Spike could honestly say that making the whelp into a meal for his dark princess was too tempting by half, but they should be perfectly safe from Dru where they were, and Buffy was way behind on the exercises he and the Watcher had planned for this week. "Not to fuss, pet. Dru's scared of the sun, she won't go into the solarium. Your mates 'll be fine, and Dru will eventually get bored and either wander in here, or go see Jill. No need for you to be distracted thinkin' about…" Whatever she didn't need to be distracted by, Willow's shriek took precedence. The vampire and Slayer dashed in the direction of the sound, which cut off abruptly, leaving a deathly silence.

As they rounded the corner, Buffy almost tripped over her feet in shock. Drusilla, or at least she assumed it was Drusilla, had her teeth in Xander's neck, while Willow stood beside her. Neither of them were struggling.

While the Slayer stumbled, willing her brain to catch up so she could help her friends, Spike called out to his former girlfriend, hoping he could get her to stop without having to hurt her. "Dru! Get your fangs out of him right this instant!" He used his sternest voice, hoping he could convince his sire to listen.

They were in luck. Dru was used to following orders, and happy to see both of them, so she easily gave in to his demand. "Spike! Look, I'm up and about!" She gave him a fangy grin, making Buffy's stomach roll at the sight of Xander's blood on her lips.

Buffy stepped forward cautiously to grab Willow and pull her away from the vampire. The redhead wasn't responding, but with some tugging the Slayer managed to move her. "Hey, Drusilla, I'm Buffy. It's nice to meet you." Buffy nearly gagged at having to be polite, but she needed to get her friends safe before she could worry about anything else.

Dru's focus drifted away from the nummy treats when she spotted the Slayer. "Sunshine!" She squealed, loosening her hold on Xander and letting him fall to the ground. Jill, who had slipped in behind the vampire unnoticed, dragged the boy back towards the kitchen.

Suddenly as it had caught hold, the thrall over Willow broke and she shrieked again, drawing the attention of Buffy and the two vampires. "You bit my friend! And…And you did something to me…"

Willow was practically hyperventilating, but whether she was more angry or scared was anybody's guess, and Spike had no patience to figure it out. "Red, get back into the solarium, and don't bloody well come back in here until the Slayer tells you, ey?"

Willow opened her mouth to object, to point out that this was a bad person…Vampire…And she'd munched on Willow's best friend; but before she could speak Buffy interrupted her. "Willow, do what Spike says, we'll get you in a minute so you can check on Xander. Now go! I don't want you getting hurt, too."

She went, but she wasn't happy about it, and she let them all know it. And then, it was just the three of them.

Spike sighed and relaxed fractionally. Dru just wanted attention, as long as they chatted her up she'd stay docile. With a little luck, they could get some of Jill's herb drugged blood into her, and she'd nod right off, and he could put her back to bed without anyone worse for wear…Well, except the boy, and he deserved a bit o' rough treatment. Buffy noticed Spike relaxing and bristled, but did her best to act calm in front of Dru. She tried to remember everything Spike had told her about his sire, hoping something would come in handy.

"Now, Dru." Spike began, striving for calm. "We talked about not killing humans anymore, didn't we? And you agreed with me, didn't you? No more happy meals with legs. So, why were you snacking on the whelp, eh? You've been a very bad girl, Dru, haven't you?"

Normally Buffy would have found that amusing, but as she watched Xander's blood dry on the vampire's lips, it was suddenly deadly serious. She wanted to kill, to make the evil girl a big pile of nice non-violent dust, and so was only mildly pacified when the vampiress hung her head in shame. "But Spike," Wow, Dru sure could whine. "I only took just the littlest sips. And I was so very hungry when I woke up, and everyone was busy…"

Spike sighed. Yup, she'd been attention-seeking. Damn unpredictable illness; if only he knew when she might be feeling well…

Dru moved closer to her boy, reaching out to caress his cheek. "You're not angry with me, are you, my sweet boy?"

Spike smiled at the other vampire, and Buffy felt her stomach roll. What a skank! Okay, sure they used to date, or whatever, but Spike said they weren't romantically involved anymore, and what nerve…Okay, and why did she care? Spike and Drusilla were not the issue here; Dru's fangs in her best friend were. She wanted to get in between them and kick a little vampire ass, but Spike's next words stopped her. "Yes, Dru, I am rather cross with you. You're not well enough to be mucking about all over the place, and you promised not to eat fresh humans. Now, here you are thralling the Slay…Sunshine's little friends, turning them into snack food…T'was very naughty of you, Dru. And naughty girls get chained up alone in their rooms, now don't they?"

Dru glowered, her eyes narrowing fiercely. Buffy took a half-step back before she could stop herself. "I was not bad! I was careful, and you're mean." With that, Drusilla spun on her heel and flounced back down the hallway towards the main part of the house. Buffy hoped Dru would take herself off to her room, but a squawk from the parrot in the living room indicated that the vampiress had settled herself there.

Spike sighed, rubbing his tired eyes. An injured boy, a Slayer who was all out of sorts, and now a mobile Sire who was acting like a spoiled five year old. It was worse than having minions, dealing with this lot. His whole day had been one upset after another, and Spike couldn't remember another time in the five years since he'd recovered his memories when he'd been more tempted to revert to killing humans, if only so he didn't have to deal with keeping them safe and happy. That plan also had the benefit of keeping Dru quiet.

Then again, there was the beautiful little Slayer with Emily's nose who would stake him at a moment's notice, and Jill would hate him, and the Slayer's Mum was a bit of alright…

"Earth to Spike, come in Spike!" Buffy was just barely controlling her temper; and the lost look in her vampire mentor's eyes wasn't helping anything. If Spike, who was so much older than her didn't know how to deal with the situation, how the heck was she supposed to figure it out? "Umm, hello, your skanky ex just took a big chunk out of my Xander-shaped friend. I may not like him as much as usual right now, but I don't want him bloody."

The bleached-blond vampire shook his head, finally meeting the Slayer's eyes. "Sorry, pet, just pondering what we should do. Don't really want to dope Dru up and put her back to bed; she needs to be up and about while she has the energy. Then again, there's the worry about your friends and their safety. And you need to train, but if I need help moving Dru, you're the best person for the job." He cracked his neck, both of them wincing slightly at the loud noise it made. "I'm tired, and a bit out of my depth here. And I very much want to ignore the injury to your 'Xander-shaped friend' because I don't like him much at the moment, so just give me a minute to remind myself why I care if he lives or dies. Why don't you go calm Red down, I'll go sit with Dru?" Spike didn't wait for Buffy to answer, he simply turned on his heel and proceeded to follow Drusilla's path to the living room.

Spike stopped in the parlor doorway, smiling faintly at the sight before him. Drusilla sat in the center of a couch in the darkened room, singing to herself. She'd somehow coaxed the parrot from its cage, and it perched on the edge of a fruit bowl on the coffee table. The bird alternately stared at the vampiress, its head tilted at an odd angle as though its little bird brain was confused by her being there, and took bites from an apple.

"Hello, Dru." He approached slowly so as not to startle either of them, maintaining his calm, slightly amused expression. "Sorry I snapped at you, pet; but you know you can't go around feeding on random humans anymore. If you're hungry, Jill and I can heat some human blood for you…"

Drusilla sniffed disdainfully at him, her song ceasing abruptly. "Feasting from a cup. That's no way for a vampire to live, my Spike."

He sighed, and fell to his knees at her side. "It's the best way I know to take care of you, Dru. I can't let you continue feeding on people, not knowing what I know now. And I can't bear to stake you." He leaned his head gently against her knee, feeling her thin flesh and the brittle bones just beneath the surface. "I have to follow my heart, Dru. And even though I'm a vampire now, my heart remains dedicated to the cause that Emily died for. Drinking blood freely given is the least I can do."

"Does it lessen your guilt, then, weakening yourself by drinking animal blood." Drusilla's rare moment of rationality pleased Spike, even as he fought to answer the difficult questions no one else had bothered to ask.

"Not guilt exactly. I do regret things I've done, kinda wish I hadn't done 'em. Was a vampire, though, didn't know any better. Didn't remember loving Emily when you made me. Didn't understand about Slayers and Potentials, and what they mean to the world. But I can't continue as I was, you must see that. And I can't allow you to continue killing, either."

"I feel guilt." The vampiress responded quietly, hanging her head so that her long hair fell across her face. "Every time I feed, since the day Angelus turned me, I have felt it. It burns me. And I run from it, inside my head. So easy, to let the pixies tell me what to do, let the demon-part guide me. The demon-part doesn't know guilt."

Spike absorbed the information quietly. He'd long wondered if that wasn't the case; if Drusilla's fractured mind hadn't created a personality split between the human and the demon, preventing them from fully incorporating. The signs had been there, over the years. Her understanding when he'd regained his memories had in itself been a clue. If Darla had been there, he felt sure he would have been staked for his weakness.

"Most of the time, I stay back and let the other parts take over." Drusilla continued slowly. "I don't much care to face things I've done and said while the demon-part was on me." Her hand fell to Spike's cheek, caressing it gently before tipping his chin up, forcing him to look into her eyes. "Need to ask…If you ever loved me…Let me go. Let your Sunshine stake me. Please."

Spike shuddered at the haunted look in his Sire's eyes. He imagined he could see the madness coming back into them, beyond the well of tears gathered there. "I don't want to lose you, Dru." He whispered, feeling the tears gather in his own eyes despite his attempt to remain calm.

"My sweet, sweet boy." The vampiress whispered. "You'll never truly lose me. My blood flows through your veins – I'm always with you." She flinched, as though a sharp pain or sudden movement had startled her. "You've taken such good care of Mummy. You'll always take care of me, won't you, my Spike."

Sensing that her personality was about to take a sharp dive back into the crazy pool, Spike grabbed the hand resting against his cheek and drew it in to kiss it. "Always, my ripe, wicked plum."


End file.
